john b



(No Model.)

J B. JOHNSON.

CAN OPENER.

No. 593,377. Patented Nov. 9,1897.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN B. JOHNSON, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO CHARLES J. ROBERTSON, OF SAME PLACE.

CAN-OPEN ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 593,377, a d Nov mb r 9, 1897- Application filed June 14, 1897. Serial No; 640,692. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN B. JOHNSON, a citizen of Sweden, (having declared my intention to become a citizen of the United States,) residing at New Britain, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Can- Openers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in can-openers; and the main object of my in vention is to provide an opener adapted to operate wholly on the outside of the can and to remove the entire cover without making any puncture therein.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is aperspective View of my can-opener together with a can, illustrating the mode of operation and Fig. 2 is a plan View of said opener.

A designates the handle; 13, the blade; C, the fucrum-rest, and D a can to which my opener is applied in Fig. 1. The handle may be of any ordinary or desired form and material. The fulcrum-rest is also of an ordinary construction. 1

The novelty of my construction resides in the blade and in the combination therewith of a handle and fulcrum-rest. The blade may be made of any suitable material. I have shown the same as of cast malleable metal in one piece with the handle, but that is immaterial. The shank 3 of the blade B depends from the fulcrum-rest at an obtuse angle -to the length of the handle, and from said shank the blade curves around in hooked form, with its upwardly-projecting end 4 substantially parallel to its depending shank 3, said end at the top being sharpened or brought to an edge, as at 5. This curved or hooked form leaves a clear and unobstructed space 8 between the depending shank 3 and upturned end at, as shown in Fig. 1. The blade and handle adjacent to the fulcrum-rest should be slightly curved in the longitudinal direction, when viewed in plan view, as shown in Fig. 2, so that the sharpened edge 5 at the top of the blade, which projects laterally from the same side that the fulcrum-rest projects from, may be placed closely against the sid of a round can.

The manner of using the opener is clearly shown in Fig. 1. The fulcrum-rest is placed on the top of the can and the sharpened end 5 of the blade is placed closely against the side of the can. By depressing the handle said blade is forced up under the flange 6 of the cover to separate it from the body of the can where it is soldered. It is then moved along a distance about equal to the width of the upturned end at and the operation repeated until the entire flange is separated or unsoldered from the can. The portion of the flange thus separated in Fig. 1 is designated by the reference-numeral 7. The handle may be depressed hard enough to slightly raise the cover at its edge, but the cover is never punctured. This operation leaves the inside of the can smooth and clean, so that the contents of the can may be readily discharged.

' I claim as my invention- The herein-described can-opener having a handle, a fulcrum-rest, a shank depending from and below the said rest, a blade of a hooked form in continuation of said shank and having an upwardly-projecting cutting end substantially parallel to said shank with the longitudinal space 8 inside of said hooked blade between the said cutting end and the said fulcrum-rest and shank, substantially as described.

JOHN B. JOHNSON. Witnesses:

J AMES SHEPARD, OHAs. J. ROBERTSON. 

